Olive Trees & the Absence of Peace

Grass burns in an olive grove after Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters during a Palestinian protest against Jewish settlements, near Ramallah in the Israeli-occupied West Bank October 16, 2020. REUTERS

 I will heal their disloyalty;

   I will love them freely,
    for my anger has turned from them.
5 I will be like the dew to Israel;
    he shall blossom like the lily,
    he shall strike root like the forests of Lebanon.[b]
6 His shoots shall spread out;
    his beauty shall be like the olive tree,
    and his fragrance like that of Lebanon.

 

Hosea 14:4-6 NRSV 

Today my Lion Lamb blog addresses the ongoing destruction by Israel of Bedouin settlements in the West Bank. These are not the only areas of the West Bank under what the Unite nation deems as the illegal disruption of areas by the Israeli military in some cases, and by settlers in others. . Palestinian communities have been harrassed and their agricultural land, including orchards have been destroyed. This is all to make way for settler communities which are now home to more than 400,000 Israelis. 

Recently I read of yet another grove of olive trees which had been burned, and that during the Fall harvest at least 1,000 trees have been destroyed. This is a grim loss of livelihood for orchard owners, but there is also the symbolism of olive trees for Palestinians and for Muslims. The olive tree is sacred and is often depicted on prayer mats, with a lantern in the branches. Olive trees are also important in Judaism, with the olive branch as a symbol of peace. There is a bitter irony that the olive tree is represented on the insignia of the Israeli Defense Forces. 

There are Jews who condemn this incursion on Palestinian land and some have assisted in the planting of replacement olive trees. Over the years Rabbis for Human Rights has donated saplings to Palestinian communities and members have acted as monitors and human shields during the harvest. 

If you besiege a town for a long time, making war against it in order to take it, 

you must not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them.

 Although you may take food from them, you must not cut them down. 

Are trees in the field human beings that they should come under siege from you?

Deuteronomy 20:19

The Hebrew scriptures have plenty of references to olive trees, and the beloved Psalm 23 speaks of God's tender anointing with the oil pressed from olives. There is also instruction not to destroy fruit trees even in times of conflict. 

As Christians we are aware that Jesus' last night before his crucifixion was spent in the olive grove called the Garden of Gethsemane which still stands in Jerusalem. 

I have written before of my dismay about this senseless destruction and I feel that we need to be reminded again and again that this is happening still. God of the three Abrahamic faiths, please bring this to an end. 

Screen shot from 5 Broken Cameras documentary